Billy Chow Bei-lei ( zh, 周比利; born August 24, 1958) is a Hong Kong-Canadian

martial artist Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...

film actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), ...

, and retired professional

kickboxer Kickboxing is a combat sport focused on kicking and punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, general ...

. He was the WKA world

Welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like Muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...

champion from 1984 to 1986, and retired with a professional record of 45-0-8. On-screen, Chow is best known for his roles as General Fujita in the 1994 film ''

Fist of Legend ''Fist of Legend'' ( zh, , t=精武英雄, j=Zing1 Mou2 Jing1 Hung4) is a 1994 Hong Kong martial arts film directed and co-written by Gordon Chan, featuring action choreography by Yuen Woo-ping, and produced by Jet Li, who also stars in the l ...

'', and Wong in the 1996 film '' Tai Chi Boxer''.

Kickboxing career

World Kickboxing Association

In the 1980s, Chow was the WKA super welterweight

kickboxing Kickboxing is a combat sport focused on kicking and punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, general ...

champion of the world from 1984 to 1986. His final match was on November 20, 2007, in which he lost via decision to Akarn Sanehha of Thailand.

History and early career

Acting

In the 1980s, Chow played an elite soldier in the 1987 film '' Eastern Condors'' alongside

Sammo Hung Sammo Hung Kam-bo ( zh, t=洪金寶, j=Hung4 Gam1-bou2; born 7 January 1952) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film producer and director, known for his work in martial arts films, Hong Kong action cinema, and as a fight choreographer for ...

Yuen Biao Yuen Biao (born Ha Lingchun; 26 July 1957) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist and stuntman. He specialises in acrobatics and Chinese martial arts and has also worked on over 80 films as actor, stuntman and action choreographer. He was one of ...

and Yuen Woo-ping. Chow played thugs in two

Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born 7 April 1954), known professionally in English as Jackie Chan and in Chinese as Cheng Long ( zh, c=成龍, j=Sing4 Lung4; "becoming the dragon"), is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and stuntman known for ...

movies: '' Dragons Forever'' in 1988, and ''

Miracles A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...

'' in 1989. In the 1990s, Chow had roles in three

Jet Li Li Lianjie (courtesy name Yangzhong; born 26 April 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese film actor, film producer, martial artist, and retired Wushu champion. He is a naturalized Singaporean citizen. After three years ...

movies: ''

'' in 1994 as General Fujita, ''

Meltdown Meltdown may refer to: Science and technology * Nuclear meltdown, a severe nuclear reactor accident * Meltdown (security vulnerability), affecting computer processors * Mutational meltdown, in population genetics Arts and entertainment Music * ...

'' in 1995 as Kong, and '' Dr. Wai in "The Scripture with No Words"'' in 1996 as Chan / Japanese Embassy Guard. Chow played Jade Tiger's Brother in the 1995 film ''Iron Monkey 2'' along with

Donnie Yen Donnie Yen Chi-tan (; born 27 July 1963) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, and action director. Yen is one of Hong Kong's top action stars. Yen is widely credited for bringing mixed martial arts (MMA) into the mainstream Asian cinema by cho ...

. Chow played Wong, Great Kick of the North in the 1996 film '' Tai Chi Boxer'' along with

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Retired from acting

On August 26, 2006, Chow retired from acting at the age of 48, after his final film, ''Dragon in Fury''.

Business

Chow was born in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest T ...

, Canada. He currently trains fighters out of Billy's Gym in Hong Kong, and Frank Lee's Muay Thai in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...

, Alberta, Canada.

Filmography

Movies

*Winner Takes All (1984) *

City Hero ''City Hero'' is a 1985 Hong Kong action comedy film directed by Dennis Yu and starring Dean Shek, Mark Cheng, Bennett Pang, Anthony Tang, Billy Lau and Michael Wong. Plot Five young and idealistic policemen, nicknamed Bravo (Mark Cheng), R ...

(1985) * Eastern Condors (1987) *Her Vengeance (1988) * Dragons Forever (1988) *

Paper Marriage ''Paper Marriage'' (Chinese: 過埠新娘) is a 1988 Hong Kong action comedy-drama film directed by Alfred Cheung and starring Sammo Hung and Maggie Cheung. Plot Set in the United States, a down-on-his-luck Chinese boxer named Bo Chin (Sammo H ...

(1988) *

Pedicab Driver ''Pedicab Driver'' () is a 1989 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by and starring Sammo Hung, who portrays the leader of a crew of cycle rickshaw drivers in 1930s Macau. The movie features guest appearances by Eric Tsang, Corey Yuen and Lau ...

(1989) *

(1989) *Into the Fire (1989) *

Blonde Fury Blond (male) or blonde (female), also referred to as fair hair, is a hair color characterized by low levels of the dark pigment eumelanin. The resultant visible hue depends on various factors, but always has some yellowish color. The color can ...

(1989) *When Fortune Smiles (1990) *Triad Story (1990) *Middle Man (1990) * Magic Cop (1990) * Licence to Steal (1990) * Touch and Go (1991) *

Robotrix ''Robotrix'' (Chinese 女机械人 pinyin: ''nǚ jīxièrén'' "Woman Robot") is a 1991 Hong Kong science fiction exploitation film directed by Jamie Luk Kin-ming and produced by the Golden Harvest Company. Bill Lui, the winner of the 23rd Hon ...

(1991) *Queen's High (1991) *

The Gambling Ghost ''The Gambling Ghost'' () is a 1991 Hong Kong action comedy film directed by Clifton Ko. It stars Sammo Hung in three roles as different generations of the same family - son, father and ghostly grandfather. Hung's co-star, Man Hoi also worked ...

(1991) *All Mighty Gambler (1991) *Wizard's Curse (1992) *Secret Police (1992) *Kickboxer's Tears (1992) *Escape from Brothel (1992) *Beauty Investigator (1992) *The Street Car Named Desire (1993) *

Future Cops ''Future Cops'' (; literal title: ''Super-School Tyrant'') is a 1993 Hong Kong action-comedy film loosely based on the ''Street Fighter'' video game franchise, starring an ensemble cast of Andy Lau, Jacky Cheung, Aaron Kwok, Chingmy Yau, Di ...

(1993) * Once Upon a Time in China IV (1993) *Bloodshed in Nightery (1993) *Romance of the Vampire (1994) *Rock on Fire (1994) *Out Bound Killing (1994) *My Friend Roy (1994) *Gambling Baron (1994) *

(1994) *

Tough Beauty and the Sloppy Slop ''Tough Beauty and the Sloppy Slop'' is a 1995 Filipino-Hong Kong action film directed by Yuen Bun and Alan Chui. It stars Yuen Biao, Cynthia Khan, Waise Lee and Monsour Del Rosario. It was theatrically released in the Philippines on January 4, 1 ...

(1995) * Iron Monkey 2 (1995) *

(1995) *Yes Madam 5 (1996) *Horrible High Heels (1996) * Dr. Wai in "The Scripture with No Words" (1996) * Tai Chi Boxer (1996) *Another Chinese Cop (1996) *18 Shaolin Golden Boy (1996) *Tough Guy (1997) *Tiger Angels (1997) *Super Cops (1997) *Crazy Mission (1997) * 97 Aces Go Places (1997) *

Young and Dangerous 5 ''Young and Dangerous 5'' () is a 1998 Hong Kong triad film. It is the fourth sequel in the ''Young and Dangerous'' film series. Plot Szeto Ho Nam from the Tung Sing Society attempts to take control of Causeway Bay by causing trouble at Chan ...

(1998) *Roller Blade Killer (1998) *Fatal Desire (1998) *Death Games (1998) *The Wanted Convict (1999) *Undercover Girls (1999) *City of Darkness (1999) *Unbeatables (2000) *Stand in Between (2000) *The King Boxer (2000) *Gei Xiao Jie Bao Biao (2000) *Mabangis na Lungsod *Camouflage (2000) *Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2000) *Dragon the Master (2002) *Star Runner (2003) *Xiao Tai Ji (2004) *Hero Youngster (2004) *Roaring Dragon, Bluffing Tiger (2006) *Dragon in Fury (2006)

References

External links

Billy's Gym (Chinese Language Website)Hong Kong Cinemagic list of films
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chow, Billy 1958 births Living people Businesspeople from Calgary Businesspeople from Edmonton Male actors from Calgary Male actors from Edmonton Canadian male film actors Canadian male kickboxers Canadian people of Hong Kong descent Canadian sports businesspeople Canadian male stage actors Hong Kong male kickboxers Sportspeople from Calgary Sportspeople from Edmonton Welterweight kickboxers Canadian-born Hong Kong artists